Poor Morgan

Morgan had a really terrible day yesterday. It started by getting sick at about 2:30 am. He really didn't seem sick after that, just an upset tummy. Of course, then I had sheets to wash and carpet to scrub before my guests at 2pm! Later, as I was just picking up here and there, I noticed Thomas, Morgan's frog, was covered with a cloud. It seems his foot was stuck in the rocks and he drowned. The kids buried him in my flower bed and Mallory plans to make him a little memorial garden paver. She got a kit for her birthday and plans to include him on her stone.

My guests were actually coming to decorate cakes and we really had a ball. Eythan's mom and sister were among the cake decorators, so my boys quickly got him changed into boots and led him down the path of no return. Michael soon came home and went out to mow, but returned for a camera. Gay and I cringed at what that might mean, but our cakes were really looking nice without the help of so many boys! Michael returned with some photos, and I'll post one when I get Gay's. They had their inner tube out in the crick and were possibly having more fun than we were!! At least boys clean up quickly. Matthew even mopped the mudroom last night. We all really had a great time. I'm glad Morgan's day could improve slightly.

We had hoped to go to the zoo again today, but with the rain, I think we'll let Matthew enjoy his last tumbling lesson and Morgan and I will go get another frog while he's there. Plan on taking the kids out to Doc Joy's first to get some cat food. I really enjoy seeing him, but I think the kids just go for the pop!! He's always giving them a bottle of pop when they come. Keeps them happy to see him, I guess!!

Kristie's Pillow

One of my co-workers lost her mother to breast cancer this week. As if that's not hard enough, her son is getting married on Saturday. Her mother was planning to make the ring bearer's pillow, so she asked me to. This is what I had time to do! I'm not sure I could have done much better with any more notice, so I do hope the bride likes it. I was just so glad Kristie asked for help. Too many people just can't seem to do that.

Thanks Steve and Kevin!

Last week, Michael caught our friend and his excavator up at Pa Rose's house, so he grabbed his coat and ran! Before too long, Steve was at our house filling in the big pit, moving the burned tree stump and filling in that pit, fixing the driveway and tearing out an old stump that seems to be a tick breeding ground. He spent the majority of the morning here, although his plan was to go from Pa Rose's straight to the farm north of us. I've never been so glad to be in the way! I was really nervous when it started sprinkling right as Steve was finishing up at our place. He said it wouldn't affect what he planned to do at the next farm, but I don't see how!! I hope I didn't blow all his plans, but I am so pleased with everything he did!!
Then last night, Kevin came out with his disc (or something, not a true farm girl here, plus I was at Cubbies) and flattened everything out and got it nice and smooth. My plans for getting much school work done today may once again be foiled as we need to go pick up all the alternators and front end clips that just found their way to the surface of our yard! It's all good, though. All part of making a home and a nice life for the family. We have plenty of time for school!! We just don't always recognize what we are learning and where... but don't give away my secrets!
And thanks once again, Kevin and Steve, for your part in our home. It is so appreciated!!!

Zoo Trip

We took a little trip on Tuesday. We planned on a short one between lunch and our lessons, but then we didn't want to leave and found ourselves calling about our lessons. Mallory lucked out and her flute teacher had already called the house with news of a sick kid and questions about rescheduling. That was what Mallory wanted! Matthew really loves his tumbling, but he said he'd miss this one if Mallory was free to stay. So we did. We had a really great time. The sun wasn't too bright, but enough to give us little white kids some color after a long, cold, teasing winter! Mallory still has some tan lines from last summer, but the rest of us really need the color!
There is quite a bit of construction going on at the moment, and they are only passing out last year's maps, so we're very anxious to see what they're doing. They've moved the budgies, which was one of our favorites. One of the zookeepers said there was a display about the construction plans on the way to the giraffes, but then we had to go check out the nursery and forgot to go back that way. The nursery was a bit disappointing. Only two tree kangaroos, and they didn't look much like babies! Oh, well, spring has just begun. Maybe more will arrive.
We're hoping to put school into overtime Monday and get up to the zoo again next Tuesday, this time with plenty of time to get back for lessons. The kids have track and field day tomorrow, so we're definitely going to have to focus!
Our new materials arrived while we were at the zoo. My dad called and wanted to talk to the boys about what they'd pay to make that box disappear! With only one day on the new materials, everyone is very excited. They have their goal cards all filled out and ready to go. We're hoping for a lot of fun!

He Is Risen!

Wow, it's early. This is what happens when you're married to a chef. He gets thrown into every church event that involves food! He loves it though! We're supposed to be there at 5:30 and here I am instead of in the shower! We have an Easter breakfast at our church between the sunrise service and Sunday school. I also have nursery for the early service, so I really should reconsider that shower. We had our little morning Easter routine with the kids yesterday, and decided to make that our new tradition. Saturday is more fun for that kind of thing, anyway. And then it doesn't get thrown in with what Easter really means! Okay, really need to find the shower...

Testing... testing

Well, we survived our first day of placement tests for the new curriculum, and I'm happy to announce that we all still love each other! I made it clear to the boys that the better they do, the less work they'll have to do, so Matthew really takes his time and gets it right. We did our spelling tests outside in sidewalk chalk... I have no idea how to send those in, but we had a really good time. I figure if you got a boy excited about spelling, you did something right!!! Everyone's anxious about the new system, but we're trying to take our time and do it right. I know there's no way to really shake the grade levels, but they won't show up on the covers of their workbooks. That's a plus to all of us. Especially if Matthew were ever to find out that Morgan is in a higher spelling level. Everything seems easy to Morgan, and this will be a good way for him to keep moving forward without Matthew knowing a thing, or needing to care. We learned so much about boys at this conference, and it has really calmed my nerves and given me new insight. Matthew is just one of those boys who learns at his own pace, and it's not time to worry about him. These tests are showing it, too. It's just so awesome to see what all he has learned when it really hasn't seemed like he's heard a word I've said!! He's testing pretty normal across the board. Mallory is, too. I thought she was a bit behind in the verbal, but it's all looking normal for her age so far. We haven't progressed far enough in the math test for any kind of final results, but that's the one Michael and I are most anxious to see. Looking at the test, it's going to be a while before she gets stumped. She's tested through all of first and second and half of third without one single mistake. They are allowed 2-3 mistakes per unit, or about an 80%, but she hasn't missed a beat. The great part is that she doesn't have to repeat anything she understands. If she gets fractions but misses too many on long division, she can get specialized material in the one and just some refreshers in the other. I guess this material has been around for 30 years, so they probably know what they're doing!! We are all looking forward to it, but we're now seeing it may still be a month off or more! Oh, well. Some things are worth the wait!!

New Days

Well, there are some changes coming soon to the Nodaway Valley Christian Academy, but changes I think everyone will welcome. I've never been so exhausted and so refreshed at the same time. Our annual conference for homeschoolers was this weekend, and my head's in a spin. We had so many great workshops, including one for "Boys and other kids who would rather build forts all day." This didn't particularly deal with moms who'd rather do the same, but I got the point! Michael went to that one, too, and I am so glad. He wants a larger role in this school, and I think he got some fantastic ideas, too. I'm just so excited about new ideas we got for nearly every subject. I went by myself on Friday, and I like that. I get a chance to look at all the materials without pressure of buying because I don't do that until Saturday when I have Michael along. Then I can explain everything to him, and hearing it out loud doesn't hurt me any either! So anyway, after these last couple of years "not working" for most of us, I knew we needed something different, and I found a curriculum that I really fell in love with. It lets the kids work at their own pace without any labels of grades, it needs no lesson plans by Mom... however... the kids have to set some goals to pace themselves. It also includes a chance to earn a day off in certain subjects when we meet certain goals. The records that are kept are so easy for us to do, and so easy for Michael to see our progress. I just kept coming back to that booth time and time again. I just knew it was so right for the whole family. Then each workshop just seemed to solidify that feeling. I guess I couldn't explain it very well to Michael Friday night, but we went to a couple workshops on Saturday morning and then I showed it to him. We are both so thrilled with it. We'll have to do some testing this week to see where to start everyone, but the courses are so detailed and the units are so short that we can get everyone placed with as little or as much duplication of material as they need. And no one moves on until a skill is mastered. You can order another of the small units for less than $3.00 if you just want to take that skill again. Okay, I'm sure you weren't planning on hearing all this, but it's just so exciting to me! I just love learning new things and now have so many new ideas for my kids to love the same and for Dad to have some sort of proof that we did indeed learn something today!! Besides the nifty new fort in the backyard, but anyhoo...